The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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JUNE/JULY 2026 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 23 2026 BASKETBALL RECRUITING ISSUE sitions. So, any time you have positional versatility, you come from the stock that Joseph comes from as far as his dad being a coach, it gives him a leg up over the typi- cal freshman." At forward, Costello could provide a lift as a shooter after elevating his game tre- mendously since last year. How much he plays could depend on how much weight he adds and his rebounding ability, but he'll get a shot. He averaged 16.2 points and 8.1 rebounds per game as a senior. "Quinn brings versatility and motor," May said after his signing last fall. "He's a big who runs the floor hard, rebounds outside his area, and embraces contact. He has a great touch and an instinct for positioning — both offensively and de- fensively. He's continued to add strength and confidence in his perimeter game, and we see real potential for growth there. "His energy and competitiveness lift everyone around him. Quinn's also a con- nector — he's humble, hard-working and fully invested in the team. He'll be a guy who earns respect the moment he steps on campus." He also has one trait they all share that's as important as anything. "Like our other guys, he's a Michigan type of guy," May said. So is Tennessee big man transfer J.P. Estrella, a 6-11 forward from Scarbor- ough, Maine, who arrives with two years of eligibility remaining. Estrella appeared in 33 games with 13 starts for the Volun- teers and averaged 10.0 points and 5.4 rebounds in 18.3 minutes per game. He scored in double figures 19 times, added three 20-point games and posted a team- best five double-doubles. "J.P. brings size, toughness and a lot of energy to our frontcourt," May said. "He knows what it takes to win at a high level and plays the game the right way. He runs the floor, rebounds, competes on every possession and gives us a strong presence around the basket. Just as important, he's a great teammate and someone who fits exactly what we're building here." FOUR MORE ADDITIONS WILL ADD DEPTH All nine of the signees do, May con- cluded, including four who might have to wait a bit before seeing the floor. One who's likely to redshirt while he recov- ers from illness is Marcus Moller. The 7-3 center from Denmark signed last fall be- fore announcing a leave from his Span- ish team in January due to a battle with testicular cancer. "He has one more procedure before he's out of the [woods]," May reported. "He's doing well. He actually went back to his club in Spain to clean out his apartment and get personal things and was able to do some workouts back there. So, he's doing well, all things considered." They'll be thrilled to get him on campus healthy, of course. Two others, meanwhile, are working their way back from injuries that obvi- ously aren't as serious. Michigan incom- ing frosh wing Lincoln Cosby of presti- gious Montverde (Fla.) Academy plans to redshirt after suffering a knee injury and reclassifying, while portal transfer and former LSU big man Jalen Reed is com- ing off an Achilles injury he suffered after only six games this past season. Cosby (6-10, 205) was Rivals' No. 37 player in his class despite the injury and No. 48 in the Rivals Industry Ranking. "Lincoln … I think this will speed up his growth and development," May said. "They do an amazing job where he is now down in Florida, at Montverde. But just being on a college campus, practicing working against college guys every day … like [Michigan guard] L.J. [Cason], he's coming off of an ACL injury. So, we were going to take it very, very slow with those guys who have major injuries. "With Jalen, we felt like if he can get back to full strength and healthy, he's a really good basketball player. We're also going to be very patient with him and his timetable to make sure he's back ready to go. We also have a lot of faith in our sports science department to invest the time and the professional expertise that they have to get him back to playing at the level he's playing at. "We thought he was a very, very good take. He could certainly outperform his expectations if he's healthy, and if he's not as healthy as early as we'd hoped, we'll have the depth to overcome that. But he's a talented young man and a great human being." Finally, guard Malachi Brown signed in the early period, but he's one who could really surprise. The Knoxville (Tenn.) Catholic standout (6-5, 196) continues to progress and is now the No. 201 player nationally in the Rivals Industry Ranking. "We saw him and really liked him and felt like with maturity, and weight room, and all the things that go into what these guys go through to get better, [he'll be good]," May said. "But he played at the Adidas All-American camp, and a couple of NBA coaches that were work- ing the camp thought that he was a top whatever player in the country. They couldn't believe that he was mostly un- heralded, and no one even knew who he was. The biggest reason was because he would defend; he would rebound. He got deflections, and he connected on of- fense. He just made simple plays. "… Guys that catch the ball and know what they're going to do before they catch it, meaning if they don't already have the shot, then they don't take it — they simply try to find the next action — that's what we envision him being, a re- ally, really good connector, cutter, Swiss army knife on offense. And then, just cutting his teeth on the defensive end." All the future Wolverines are expected to arrive this summer to start preparing defense of the program's first national title since 1989. ❏ U-M's 2026 Prep And Portal Additions Player Pos. Ht. Wt. High School Malachi Brown G 6-5 196 Knoxville (Tenn.) Catholic Lincoln Cosby F 6-9 205 Montverde (Fla.) Academy Quinn Costello F 6-10 195 Boston The Newman School Joseph Hartman G 6-6 185 Gainesville (Fla.) The Rock School Brandon McCoy Jr. G 6-5 190 Chatsworth (Calif.) Sierra Canyon Marcus Moller C 7-3 230 Unicaja Malaga U22 (Spain) Player Pos. Ht. Wt. College J.P. Estrella F 6-11 240 Tennessee Jalen Reed F 6-10 245 LSU Moustapha Thiam C 7-2 250 Cincinnati